She passed the creature to London’s Natural History Mus-eum, whose staff declared that it was an Egyptian grasshopper.[>

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They were amazed the huge insect had managed to survive the 2,000-mile journey to the Brighton store.[>

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The female grasshopper was later taken to Drusillas Zoo, in Alfriston, East Sussex.[>

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Expert Angela Hale said: “Although it may give someone a bit of a shock, these insects are harmless. The grasshopper is in excellent health and settling into her new home, where we hope she will be very happy.”[>

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Tesco has apologised to the customer. A spokesman said: “All of our products go through quite a lot of processes before they reach the customer – although an unpleasant surprise is something that can happen on very, very rare occasions.”[>

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Although unexpected in a Tesco salad, insects are eaten by people in many other countries.[>

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The Royal Entomology Society estimates 80% of the world’s pop-ulation eat them regularly.[>

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In southern Africa, the mopane worm industry is worth £200million, and is an important source of protein for the population.[>

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Insect farms have recently opened in the Netherlands, concentrating on large beetles, crickets and locusts.[>

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United Nations agriculture expert Professor Arnold Van Huis said: “In the West, because of the mild climate, we’re not used to eating insects. [>